North Korea has confirmed that the weapon it fired off its east coast on Tuesday morning was a newly-developed hypersonic missile, in the latest addition to the nuclear-armed nation’s bloated military arsenal.
The country’s state media, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) described the missile as a “strategic weapon” saying that the development of the weapon system will strengthen North Korea’s defence capabilities.
KCNA said that North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong Un did not attend the launch but the Workers’ Party of Korea’s top official Pak Jong Chon was present.
The state media said that the missile named Hwasong-8 performed to its technical targets “including the guiding manoeuvrability and the gliding flight characteristics of the detached hypersonic gliding warhead. In the first test-launch, national defence scientists confirmed the navigational control and stability of the missile.”
Meanwhile, the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper posted a picture of the weapon ascending into the morning sky with a set of guidance fins at the base of its nose cone.
North Korea has been steadily developing its military arsenal amid an impasse over talks aimed at dismantling its nuclear and ballistic missile arsenals in return for relief on sanctions that have crippled its economy.
Experts say that the Hwasong series missiles use liquid propellant engines and this is the first test of a liquid propellant missile that North Korea has conducted since November 2017. Weapon’s analysts say that Pyongyang’s latest weapon can travel five to seven times faster than the speed of sound. The sheer speed and their varied trajectories make hypersonic missiles hard to detect, track, and defend.
Earlier in January, North’s leader Kim had signalled his intention to upgrade the country’s military capabilities during a party congress where he specifically mentioned a hypersonic missile system as a longstanding wish. The hypersonic launch was North Korea’s third missile test this month. North Korea previously launched a “strategic” cruise missile and two railway-borne ballistic missiles despite the UN sanctions on conducting ballistic missile tests over the nuclear-armed country’s weapons program.
South’s own weapons program
Amidst North’s aggressive missile testing regime, South Korea has also been boosting its military arsenal.
South Korea tested its first underwater-launched missile on the same day that Pyongyang tested its railway-launched weapon. On Tuesday, the South Korean Navy announced its plans to launch its third submarine capable of firing ballistic missiles. Earlier on September 15, both countries tested ballistic missiles only hours apart.
The talks on North’s denuclearisation have stalled since 2019 after three summits between Kim and former US President Donald Trump.
Earlier last week, North Korea said expressed its willing to consider another round of dialogue with South Korea conditional to mutual respect between the neighbours. Earlier, South Korean President Moon Jae-in had called for a declaration to formally end the Korean War.
The 3-year long Korean War was suspended in 1953 with an armistice but there has been no formal treaty to end the war, leaving the two countries technically still in a state of conflict.
Since US President Joe Biden’s swearing in, the United States government has reiterated its willing to meet North Korean officials anywhere, at any time to resume negotiations on denuclearisation. However, on Tuesday, White House condemned the now-confirmed hypersonic launch saying the test was a gross violation of the UN sanctions on the country’s weapons program and a threat to the international community.
